Roy Lewis road tests VW Golf (From Hereford Times)

Roy Lewis road tests VW Golf

10:00am Monday 15th June 2009

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THE legendary Volkswagen Golf may have had some of its thunder stolen by one or two cars in its highly-competitive sector of the market but it still remains the hatch to beat, particularly as a long-term prospect.

Like its predecessor, the new model is a great driver’s car, exceptionally practical, well built and with a reliability record second to none.

The sheer simplicity of the sixthgeneration car is an important weapon in its armoury. It may have undergone numerous design changes but the well-loved traditional styling stays, with no attempts to bow to recent market styling trends and convey a sports car look.

The new model gets cleaner, more elegant lines on the outside, particularly to the front end which makes it a little more aerodynamic, while the same elements of simplicity and attention to detail are applied to the interior, which has gone upmarket.

Value for money the Golf may be, but it isn’t the cheapest car in the class, with prices ranging from £12,875 to £19,236. But as a package with so many strengths, it will be worth every penny.

The diesels are the big sellers with a new 2.0-litre TDi 110 PS already a favourite, and a 2.0-litre TDi with 140 PS. Other diesel variants will follow this year, including a 1.6-litre with 90 PS and a 2.0-litre with 170 PS.

The petrol engines comprise a 1.4- litre 80 PS, 1.6-litre 102 PS and two 1.4-litre TSi units with 122 or 160 PS.

While the new Golf keeps the same successful chassis, it borrows VW’s adaptive chassis control from the Scirocco for top models and this allows the driver to select from normal, comfort or sport modes to define the suspension, steering and accelerator response settings for any particular journey.

Although slightly shorter and lower than its predecessor, the Golf’s wheelbase remains the same but the car is wider, with a more dynamic stance and more room for five adults.

Automatic distance control will be available later in the year. This monitors the area around the vehicle and automatically reduces, if necessary, the vehicle’s speed to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front.

And building on the technical advances are new levels of safety, including the addition of a knee airbag for the driver to bring the total airbags fitted as standard to seven, which helped the Golf to obtain a top score of five stars in the latest Euro NCAP safety tests.

The new 2-0-litre diesel with 110 PS on tap makes a strong case for itself with an excellent spread of power which should prove sufficient for most drivers. The engine is fast and safe for overtaking and boasts topbracket fuel economy figures ranging from 44.1mpg to 70.6mpg to average 57.6mpg.

On the road this engine is particularly well suited to the car and with such a forgiving chassis there are superb handling qualities to savour.

Three trim levels are offered – S, SE and GT – with standard equipment including air conditioning, a CD stereo system and body-coloured exterior trim.

During the summer, the Golf Bluemotion, with a combined fuel consumption of 70mpg and hopefully free road tax, will be on sale, plus an advanced 2.0-litre GTi with 210PS.

AT-A-GLANCE New VW Golf 2.0-litre TDi 110 PS 3-door 5-speed manual.

Price: £16,880 (on-the-road).

Top speed: 120mph.

0-62mph: 10.7 seconds.

Fuel: 57.6mpg (combined figure).

Emissions: CO2 (g/km): 128.

Verdict: Sets benchmark in class, great all-rounder, topnotch build quality, drives and handles superbly, impressive economy.

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